Dissolution
by Shadowgirl1
Summary: To protect Toby, I’ve often wondered if Sarah would deny him the world of imagination. If she did, it would be up to Toby to uncover that world and anyone who waited inside…


_It was a ball of crystal and it fit in the palm of his hand. It didn't stay there. It rolled from hand to hand, sparkling in the sun and if he looked closely he could see-_

"Get your head out of the clouds!"

Toby shook his head and looked to his mother. "Huh?"

"You're staring off into space again," his mother said, glaring over her orange juice.

"I was just thinking about an assignment," Toby said. "You need to chill, mom." He dug halfheartedly into his cereal and placed a spoonful into his mouth, forcing a mushy chew.

"I was reminding you that the neighbors are having a party tonight," his mom said, delicately dabbing her lips. "The families from your father's company will all be in attendance and we're to look our best."

"Do I have to go? I'm here on break," Toby said, pushing his bowl to the side. "I just want to relax and catch up on some reading."

"Yes, you _have_ to go," his mom said.

"I bet Sarah isn't going," Toby said.

"She's a grown woman," her mom said.

"I'm in grad school," Toby said. "I can make my own decisions, I've paid my own tuition and I can decide what to do on my own break. You have no power over me." He stood, taking his dishes to the sink. "I'll go if I get enough written on my paper, mom."

"Fine," his mom said.

Toby finished rinsing the dishes and set off to his room. He flipped open his cell phone and texted Sarah,** Mom at it again. You in a place to talk?**

After a few moments, his cell phone dinged.

**Give me 5 minutes. Finishing up a meeting.**

Toby went to his room and touched the mouse of his computer. His screen flickered to life, revealing a term paper. He tapped out a few sentences before his cell rang.

"Hey Sarah, thanks for calling."

"No problem, kiddo. I was serious when I said that if you needed to talk to call me."

"Mom wants me to go to some fancy dinner tonight," Toby said, leaning back in the computer chair. He relayed what he told her.

"You handled it well," Sarah said.

"Yeah, well, I'm good at compromises," Toby said.

"Yeah, well, something tells me you weren't thinking about an assignment," Sarah said.

"What makes you say that? I take my schoolwork serious enough."

"That you do," Sarah laughs, "but don't forget that a big sister always knows when her little brother is up to something."

Toby brought up another screen on the monitor and scrolled through the pages. "I've been working on a side project."

"Side project?"

"A story," Toby said. There was a long pause on his sister's end. "Sarah? You still there?"

"Yeah, I'm here," she said. "What kind of story?"

"I don't know yet," Toby said. "It comes to me in snatches. Kind of like I'm dreaming during the day."

"Read some to me," Sarah said.

"_He stared into the fountain pool, face obscured by the ripples. People like him did not cry. It was not befitting to his position of power. A gust of wind blew the petals of a nearby peach tree into the water and they landed on his hair. His gloved hand covered his face before his fingers ran through his hair. He has been idle for far too long."_

"Toby, you've got to stop writing this," Sarah said.

"What? Why? It's harmless and it passes the time," Toby said. "Dad said that you used to make up stories all the time when you were younger, and then you stopped. I wish you would have told me some of them."

"There was a good reason I stopped," Sarah said. "Besides, your mom wouldn't let me read to you and you know why I got out of the house as soon as I graduated. She didn't want stories filling your head."

"They did _you_ well," Toby countered. "You work for an international publishing company after all."

"True," Sarah said, "but listen, you're in grad school, architect boy. Stick to your studies and drop the story, okay?"

"I've gotta go," Toby said, not up for a lecture. "I'll talk to you later."

"Talk to you later," Sarah said.

Toby pocketed the cell phone and sighed, chin in hand. Imitating his mother's high pitched voice, "You need to make a living to support a family. You need a wife of your class and then you'll send your _must_ send your children to the best private schools."

He rubbed his eyes and responded to his mom's imitation, "Not sure I even wanna settle down with a woman, Mom. And marriage, yeah right."

He went to the window and watched his parents leave for the party. "Man, I wish I could just go somewhere and get away from all these expectations. All of this is an _illusion _and I'm just sick of it."

The lights flickered and Toby went for a bedside flashlight. Going over to the computer, he made sure to save his documents. When he went to pull away from the computer, the mouse cord snapped around his wrist.

"What the-?!"

Something banged against his window and he was shocked to see a pure, white owl. He yanked against the mouse cord and fell to the floor. Another slim cord wrapped around his ankles, twining its way up his body ad yet another wrapped around his shoulders to circle his chest.

"Help!" He struggled in the cords. "Somebody, HELP!"

With a growl he pulled at the cords, struggling to his feet. Electrical devices in his room buzzed to life, sizzling with a blue current that made his ears ring with pain. Lightning flashed outside and Toby scrambled out of his room. Doors opened in the hallway, slamming with the ferocity of a poltergeist's rage before swinging open again.

Toby ran, pulling off the cords as they tried to constrict around him. He ran out the front door, slipping down the front steps as a downpour descended around him. Barefoot he ran through the rain, hands pressed to his ears.

"Stop it!" He ran into the nearby fields, trying to be free of the ringing in his ears. A bolt of lightning struck a tree to his right and he dove to the left, falling hard into the mud. He laid in a small ditch, lungs screaming for air. He squeezed his eyes shut, wishing that the chaos would end.

A loud clap of thunder was the last thing he heard before he fell unconscious.

Cool hands touched his forehead, trailing down his face to smooth away the mud.

Warm water caressed his naked body, flowing over his muscles like a mountain stream.

He was floating.

When he opened his eyes he found himself in a four poster bed, covered in silk sheets. He sat up, grabbing at the sheets when he realized that he was naked. He looked around in a panic for his clothes.

"Relax," a male voice said.

Toby clutched the sheets tighter around his body and looked to the voice. It belonged to a striking man who sat cross legged on a plush chair beside the bed. Pale hair curved his face and sharp eyes regarded him thoughtfully.

"Where are my clothes?"

"Destroyed," the man said, "they were ruined by the elements. Besides, you are much more natural this way."

"Who are you?"

"My name is Jareth and I am the Goblin King."

"Hello Jareth," Toby smiled, "thanks for getting me out of the storm." He paused, "wait, the _Goblin _King?"

Jareth tilted his head. "Sarah really has not told you?"

"You know my sister?" Toby tilted his head the opposite way to regard the man. "You date her or something?"

"Or something," Jareth's lips twisted into a smirk.

"Listen, Mr. Goblin King, Sir…your Highness? I appreciate all that you did, but I really should get back," Toby said. He pulled the sheets around his waist and went to stand. His head reeled and his stomach leapt to his throat.

Strong hands grabbed his arms and settled him back to the bed. "You may call me Jareth."

"Thanks, Jareth."

"You're an unusual young man," Jareth said regarding him. "You've grown much."

Toby looked to him with wide eyes. "Do I know you?"

Jareth smoothed Toby's hair back and clucked his tongue. "Pity that Sarah did not tell you. It would have saved you a lot of pain."

"What are you talking about?"

"You've chosen to be free of your illusions," Jareth said. "I shall rip the mask away and dissolve them."

Toby's head was cradled and Jareth placed a hand over Toby's heart before leaning over to kiss his forehead. Lips burned against Toby's skin and he cried out, images swirling in his head like jagged glass. Two decades crashed together in his skull, falling through an hourglass into a pile of crystalline dust.

_The recognition of illusion is its dissolution. By seeing who you are not, your true self emerges. With me you will own nothing; as such you will not suffer when it is taken away. Free from the world of mental abstraction, you will experience the aliveness of the universe. No longer will you live the conceptualized reality. _

Jareth pulled away and feather kissed Toby's lips. "Sleep well, sweet Prince. Your throne awaits you when you wake."

Toby didn't dream – he remembered - the goblins, the castle, the king and Sarah, watching her come to find him. Toward the very end she made the Goblin King's world dissolve, he held no power over her, but she never included Toby in her proclamation. However, she made Jareth promise that Toby would have no recollection of his time with the king. That any attempts to ensnare him in a world of fantasy would be erased from his memory.

When he woke again, Toby found his face wet with tears. He felt lighter and didn't cling to the sheets. He got out of the bed and walked over to a full length mirror. He touched the glass and stared at his reflection. A flicker by the window caught his eye and he smiled at a butterfly. It fluttered over him and he lifted his hand. Landing on his finger he took several minutes to admire its wings before he took it back to the window to fly free. He gasped when he saw the expanse of the labyrinth.

A robe spilled around his shoulders and Toby turned to face the Goblin King.

"You built all this?"

"I am the architect of its ever shifting design," Jareth replied.

"I've studied architecture," Toby said. "Can I talk a walk?"

"You may go where you wish," Jareth said. "However, aspects of my labyrinth are not without danger. Pain is not exempt in my realm; however, there are ways to lessen it. You are still a newborn here and have much to learn."

"Will you walk with me then?"

Jareth looked startled.

"Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," Jareth said. "Let us start in the gardens."

They walked quietly to the gardens, with Toby stopping every so often to examine a pillar.

"You puzzle me," Jareth finally said.

"Why?"

"I've taken you twice now," Jareth said. "Yet both times, you were and are utterly comfortable here."

"This place makes me feel at ease," Toby said. "I can't quite explain it."

"You have no expectations," Jareth mused aloud.

"I guess," Toby shrugged.

Jareth placed a hand on Toby's shoulder and led him into the gardens.

They approached a fountain and Toby trailed his fingers in the water. He looked up to a flowering tree, noticing the fruit that bloomed on his branches. He was delighted when Jareth plucked down a peach.

"Thank you."

Jareth nodded and sat against the tree trunk.

Toby nestled beside him, nibbling on the peach and staring up at the flowers. "I wrote about this place."

"I know," Jareth said.

"Do you know what else I was writing about?"

"Hmm?"

"That the creation of each architect is an expression of their soul," Toby said.

Jareth leaned back. "I agree with you."

"You do?"

"The labyrinth is created by magic and its source resides in my soul."

Toby mused aloud. "But, you said that the labyrinth was not without pain.

Jareth tilted his head to regard him. "Indeed."

Toby stood and looked around him, not noticing Jareth's continued gaze. "Still, it's quite beautiful. I like it regardless, even if I haven't seen all of it yet."

"You will," Jareth said, "in time."

Toby looked to him. "Really?"

Jareth stood and locked eyes with him. "You have my word."

* * *

**Author's Note**: Initially written for a challenge community.


End file.
